


A Boy and His Dragon

by mist_chance



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-19 05:45:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11306940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mist_chance/pseuds/mist_chance
Summary: Most children have a dog or cat as a family pet, growing up. But the Trafalgar family has never been normal; with parents who are the leading doctors of Flevance's medical field and head of the country's best hospital, and even Law, himself, who's years ahead of his peers in intelligence and medical studies, it only makes sense that their "family pet" is the dragon he found in the forest outside of town.And when Flevance is (destroyedburnedtothegroundwipedoffthemap)...gone, it's Hisui who whisks him away from the aftermath. If Fate (thatbitch) had any plans for him, they were foiled the moment he brought Hisui into his family.It's a cold kind of satisfaction — the kind he doesn't truly appreciate until he's much older — but Law will take what he can get, when Hisui is all that's left of his family.





	A Boy and His Dragon

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything from _One Piece_.

_Shitshitshitshitshitshit **shit** ,_ Thatch mentally chanted as he pressed his back against a tree trunk in a futile attempt to become one with it. Out of all the supposedly uninhabited islands that existed in the New World, _why_ did they have to dock at one that was not only _not_ uninhabited, but one that happened to be inhabited by a _freaking dragon_?

(To be fair, Oyaji _had_ uncharacteristically warned the scouting-and-scavenging party to be careful. Oyaji was the only member of the crew with complete control of his Kenbunshoku Haki to notice the presence of a being like a dragon without stepping foot on the island.)

Sweat stuck Thatch’s shirt to his skin, making rough tree-bark dig deeper into his back. His heart beat like it would race out of his chest into a separate entity; it was a miracle the dragon hadn’t heard it. Thatch cautiously peered around the tree trunk to get a better look at it. (Okay, so _maybe_ his first instinct had been to duck behind something instead of inspecting the dragon. In Thatch’s opinion, it was good self-preservation to hide oneself _before_ spying on a supposed mythical being that shouldn’t exist, and probably had a diet consisting of human flesh to some degree.)

The dragon, now that he looked closer, wasn’t big – maybe bigger than a horse, but not the immense size (on the scale of an Elbaf giant or even the legendary Oars) the myths claimed. It was beautiful in the way some predators were in their lethalness, sleek and unassuming until they attacked. Its dark-blue scales glinted like the deeper parts of the ocean did on a clear, sunny day, and its features seemed proportionate from where it was curled on the ground, nose to tail-tip. From its closed eyes and the steady rise and fall of its sides, Thatch was mostly certain it was asleep.

His heart rate, and the panicked, reflexive fight-or-flight prey response he’d felt, eased. Oh, he knew it was still dangerous – only an idiot would let his guard down around a dragon, sleeping or not – but he also figured if the dragon hadn’t woken to his stumbling around before, he should be fine carefully making his way back to his nakama. Then he’d warn them about the dragon, and for those who insisted on exploring the island in spite of the dragon’s presence, he could keep them away from this place.

That would’ve been Thatch’s plan, if he hadn’t caught sight of a brown-spotted, white fur cap in his peripheral vision. The sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach returned when it turned out the cap covered the head of a child no older than ten. The boy muttered to himself as he walked towards the dragon, presumably reading the book he held in one hand. In his other hand, he carried a fistful of plants. 

Thatch clenched his jaw – there was no way in hell he was going to watch a kid walk to his death. Inhaling deeply and holding the air in his chest until it ached, Thatch darted out of the tree line, grabbed the kid by the waist, and covered his mouth. The kid immediately began squirming, kicking, biting, and though his shouts were muffled, they still seemed loud in Thatch’s ears. Of course, before Thatch could turn tail and run, the dragon woke up. Its teal eyes honed in on them, and the dragon opened its vicious maw to let out a fearsome, deafening roar.

_God **dammit**. _

\-------------------- 

Marco flew towards the source of all the noise, knowing Thatch (that idiot) was probably nearby. He didn’t expect to find himself staring down a dragon when he dove into the canopy of trees above the source, but Marco was still quick to hover between the other mythical being and his idiot brother.

Marco trilled a warning at the beast. He wasn’t surprised to receive a roar in return. What did surprise him was the presence he felt the dragon emitting – powerful, vast, and _ancient_. Marco had never felt a presence so old and powerful. Not even Oyaji could compare to the dragon’s presence. In fact, compared to the dragon, Oyaji's presence felt like the wannabe pirates that were stupid - or arrogant - enough to challenge him.

He carefully transformed in midair, letting his flames meld back into his human form as he landed feather-light on his feet. His gaze stayed locked onto the dragon’s strangely human teal eyes, which were more of a swirling mix of vibrant blues and greens than a solid teal.

“Marco, I really hope you know what you’re doing,” Thatch hissed from behind him.

“You’re holding a kid, aren’t you?” Marco didn’t look away from the dragon’s eyes. “Let him go, yoi.”

“Are you _insane_?”

“Thatch,” Marco said sharply, his tone unyielding. He heard Thatch sigh, but the rustling behind him indicated the idiot had listened to him for once.

The kid (Marco hadn’t gotten a good look at him; he’d only noticed it was a boy with a fur cap) darted towards the dragon and launched himself at it. As the kid wrapped his short, skinny arms around the dragon’s long neck, the dragon’s head dipped down to curl over the boy’s shoulder. It crooned as it gently nuzzled the boy’s head.

“What…?” Thatch trailed off bewilderedly as he moved to stand next to Marco.

“The kid’s its hatchling, yoi,” Marco sighed in exasperation. “And it looked like you were trying to kidnap him.” He glared at the bedraggled cook.

“How was I supposed to know that?” Thatch demanded indignantly. “I thought the kid was walking to his death!”

Marco fixed a deadpanned look on him. “This place is uninhabited. How else would this kid have gotten here, if not with the dragon, yoi?”

An embarrassed flush trailed up Thatch’s neck as the cook scratched it. “I...Well…” He glanced at the dragon.

The dragon, watching them suspiciously, curled its lip enough to show a hint of teeth when Thatch looked at it. Thatch flinched and averted his gaze.

“Who are you?” The kid demanded, drawing Marco’s attention. The kid glared at them from his position near the dragon’s chest. There was a clawed paw, eerily resembling a human hand, curled loosely around his waist.

Marco held his hands up in a non-threatening gesture, nudging Thatch in the ribs to get him to do the same. “I’m Marco the Phoenix, First Division commander of the Shirohige no Ichimi. This is Thatch, a cook and the Fourth Division commander. We dropped anchor at this island to re-supply earlier today.”

The kid glanced at the dragon, probably for reassurance. The dragon’s eyes focused on Marco’s partially covered chest - on Oyaji’s mark. It snorted as it glanced back at the kid.

He nodded. “I’m Trafalgar Law. This is Hisui.” The kid patted the dragon’s scaly neck. “Hisui says Shirohige’s alright for a Yonko, whatever that means, so as long as you don’t bother us, we won’t bother you.”

“Fair enough. But do you mind if I stick around a bit to talk with you?” Marco asked the dragon. “I’ll send this idiot back to tell the others about our deal.” He jabbed a thumb in Thatch’s direction.

Hisui gazed at Marco for a long moment. The dragon was apparently satisfied with whatever it saw, since it nodded and scratched, **Fine** , on the ground with a sharp claw.

 -------------------- 

Marco sat down on the ground a few feet away from Hisui. It took a few minutes of Law watching Marco to regain whatever sense of security he’d felt prior to Thatch’s interference, but when he did, Law began rummaging around in a backpack he’d retrieved from beside the dragon.

“I found the herb I’ve been looking for.” Law’s voice held a childish excitement Marco hadn’t thought the stern-looking kid was capable of. “Yes, the one that’ll improve the medicine I’m making for the Spider-Miles equivalent of the common cold,” he told Hisui with a large smile. “I’ll make a vaccine while I’m at it, and then we’ll both be ready to go.” Hisui puffed a small exhale at Law. The kid _giggled_ as he grabbed the brim of his hat to keep it from flying off. “I know everything will turn out okay because I have you, Hisui.”

An unthreatening sound, almost a croon, rumbled in Hisui’s chest as the dragon gently nudged Law with its snout. Law, clutching his backpack, glanced at Marco again as the dragon continued to nudge him.

“I don’t know why you want to talk with Hisui, but if you hurt him, I’ll hurt you back,” Law threatened with a glare that looked more adorable than threatening.

“That’s not my intention, yoi,” Marco said to reassure the kid, though he knew it wouldn’t be taken to heart.

The kid maintained his glare until Hisui huffed and nudged hard enough to make him stumble. “I’m going, I’m going,” Law groused as he shrugged his backpack on. “I’ll just collect some samples and check on the other herbs I found. I’ll be back soon.”

Marco watched the kid leave, not bothering to speak until he was out of sight. “Does the kid understand you, or can you speak to him somehow?” 

**Bond _._** The dragon scratched in the dirt and then gestured to his head.

“So you speak to him telepathically because he’s bonded to you as your hatchling,” Marco clarified. Hisui nodded and looked at him expectantly. Marco fingers flexed into fists, his heart beating faster as he prepared to confess, or at least hint at, his biggest secret – his biggest _concern_ – to a dragon. He knew he didn’t _have_ to, but ignoring the issue wasn’t getting him anywhere. If anything, the anxiety festered. Marco inhaled deeply as he lifted his eyes to meet the dragon’s gaze. “I’m not good with Kenbunshoku Haki, but I have enough control to sense your presence. I could feel how…old you are. I want to know how you deal with it, if you’re willing to share.”

Hisui leveled an inscrutable gaze at Marco, and then wrote: _May I touch you?_

Marco doubted the dragon intended to nuzzle him. That only left a spiked tail, leathery wings, or clawed appendages. If he hadn’t eaten his Devil Fruit, Marco probably would’ve been leery about the question. As it was, he nodded his assent and unflinchingly held the dragon’s gaze as a claw gently tapped his forehead. There was a jolt at the point of contact. Something… Marco wasn’t sure _what_ , but he _knew_ there was a change. A strange, foreign presence entered his head. It felt similar to the dragon – powerful, ancient, and vast to the point of being overwhelming, as though if he tried touching it he’d drown and lose himself…

**_It’s easier to talk this way,_** a deep voice rumbled in Marco’s head, which he immediately identified as Hisui’s. The sound of it grounded Marco to himself once more. Hisui’s presence in his head became bearable, more distinct and separate from his mind. The dragon lowered his front paw with the same care he’d used to lift it towards Marco.

“So you need physical contact to initiate a telepathic link, unless you form a bond with a person?” Marco asked curiously.

**_I’ve never bonded with a human before Law. I don’t know what is or isn’t the norm of what we experience through it._** Hisui idly flicked his tail, rustling the grass beneath it. **_But yes, in the few instances I encountered humans who didn’t immediately fear or attempt to destroy me, I made the effort to communicate with them as I have with you._** Before Marco could consider the implications of the dragon’s words, Hisui went on to say: **_I can’t share how I ‘dealt’ with my lack of aging, because I don’t remember ‘how.' I am over eight hundred years old – if there was ever a time I felt despair at living a long life and being left behind by the ones I love… I cannot recall it._**

Marco’s heart sank at the dragon’s candid response. What had he been thinking, anyways? Hisui was a dragon, not a human. He probably barely understood human emotions, for all he could initiate telepathic communication with humans and was bonded to one.

**_Humans aren’t meant to live long. Your Devil Fruit prepares you, physically and mentally, for a longer life span. You’ve noticed, haven’t you? That your body has not aged._ **

Marco flinched; it had taken almost twenty years on the Moby Dick for him to realize his body had stopped aging. He looked the same as he had when he’d eaten his Devil Fruit. That realization led Marco to conclude his family was leaving him behind as they grew older – and that one day, he would be left behind while his family went on in death. The thought of being left alone for an eternity (since the phoenix usually symbolized immortality, or at least longevity) was…terrifying.

**_There is something I have learned about humans over the years._** Hisui interrupted Marco’s brooding. ** _If you live long enough and look close enough, you’ll find the same eyes in different faces, the same actions and behaviors in different bodies._** The dragon tilted his head so one of his strange eyes held Marco’s gaze. _**One day, you will**_ ** _see Shirohige’s eyes, Thatch’s eyes – the eyes and actions of every one of your brothers and sisters, in strangers. I’m not saying they will be reincarnated, or that such a thing does or does not exist. What I do know exists, is the capability for one human’s Will to be passed on to another in the most unexpected ways. You will learn to live for the echoes of the Wills you see in the people you currently hold dear; and it will be enough._**

“Do you see an echo in the kid?” Marco asked, so he wouldn’t have to think over Hisui’s words and how they affected him. He could do that later in the privacy of his room.

**_A faint one._** The dragon's voice sounded wry as he dipped his head. **_Years ago, I raised a boy. I can’t remember his name or his appearance, much less his eyes. But I remember the strength he had to endure the losses and hardships life cruelly forced on him; his desire to live when the world had decided he should no longer exist, and how he was still able to laugh and smile despite all of that. I had forgotten about him, until I met Law. That child is precious to me – not because I see the echo of a boy from long ago, but because he reminds me of what it means to love another living being. For me, it makes up for the decades and centuries I spent indifferent to the world._**

Marco smiled at the fondness in the dragon’s thoughts. “I know you probably think you’re the one who’s lucky to have him since he’s so important to you, but I think the kid’s lucky to have you too, yoi.”

**_…I suppose he is._** Hisui’s remark was stilted, the emotions from his previous thoughts suddenly smothered; it felt like a mental wall had been erected between his and Marco’s minds.

Based on the dragon’s response, Marco knew better than to push that line of conversation. “…Have you ever met anyone or anything as long-lived as you?” It was the last question Marco could think of. There was a restless energy in the dragon’s presence brushing against his mind; he doubted Hisui had any more patience for further questions.

**_Elbaf giants live for a long time. Aside from them, I know only of Zunisha. He is older than me by a couple hundred years or so. You may know of him as the island of Zou._ **

“Zou?” Marco frowned. He knew of the island; he’d heard the Mink Tribe, a civilization of anthropomorphic animals who were said to possess impressive fighting ability, lived on Zou. But they rarely left their island, and Zou was difficult, almost impossible to locate, even for those who knew of its existence. “Isn’t it a given for any landmass to be older than you?” He raised a skeptical brow.

**_Of course,_** Hisui agreed. **_But it’s a little different when the island is located on the back of a giant elephant, condemned to wander and search the seas until his death. I don’t know if Zunisha even remembers why he was condemned in such a way, or what he’s looking for._**

The back of a giant… Well, that explained why only the Mink Tribe could locate Zou. Marco shook his head in amazement; just when he thought he’d seen and heard it all, especially given the Shirohige no Ichimi’s track record in the New World, he ended up meeting and talking to a dragon, and learning about an island that was literally on the back of a giant animal.

“It was nice meeting you and the kid, yoi. I’ll get out of your…scales, and keep my crew from bothering you. Thanks for talking with me.” Marco dipped his head politely as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

**_You’re welcome. Safe travels to you and your crew, Marco the Phoenix. We’ll meet again._ **

Hisui closed his eyes, and the mental link or whatever that allowed the dragon’s presence to interact with Marco’s mind fizzled into nothingness. Marco was surprised at how…empty his head felt, now that Hisui’s presence was gone. (If he felt empty after a temporary connection to the dragon dissolved, how would the kid - or even Hisui - feel if their bond was ever broken?)

Still, Marco knew a dismissal when he saw one. With a final, lazy wave to the dragon, Marco turned on his heel to make his way back to the Moby Dick. Hisui had given him a lot to think about; and, surprisingly enough, the dragon had managed to ease a lot of Marco’s anxiety, too. Who knew the promise of a future meeting could be so comforting?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This (a version of it) is cross-posted on Tumblr, as "A Phoenix's Solace."
> 
> I guess this is more of a prologue, though that wasn't my intention when I originally wrote this. Next chapter, when I get around to writing it, should be from Hisui's or Law's (or both) point of view.
> 
> Please show your support by leaving kudos and/or comments!


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